What Made It: Make A Great Documentary Opening Scene

One element of narrative filmmaking that is so largely overlooked by the documentary world is the opening shot or scene. It’s my belief that we need to win over the audience’s trust in order to gain their attention. In particular, I want to take a look at the opening scenes of the feature docs RBG and Public Trust and examine how through great storytelling, pacing, and music, they create stunning and intriguing opening scenes that lay the foundation for the rest of the film.

Story

Both RBG and Public Trust communicate the primary tension of the film in the opening scene.

Public Trust, whose logline reads: “our public lands and waters are under threat”, opens with four brief voiceovers from this ensemble cast of characters who have a different perspective on the fight. In each quote, the character succinctly reflects on what is at stake. This argument is made more pressing by journalist Hal Herring’s voiceover, who alerts viewers to the quiet overtaking of public lands by private interests that has taken place under our noses.

The logline of RBG reads: “An intimate portrait of an unlikely rockstar: Justice RBG. The filmmakers explore how her early legal battles changed the world for women.” In the opening scene, we are met with a barrage of male colonial statues dispersed throughout Washington, D.C. The mood of these stodgy, looming figures is matched by the disgust from the voiceover montage: various male newscasters looking down upon RBG. This opening sequence sets up the mountain that our hero of the film, RBG, must climb in order to become the public figure she is regarded as today.

Pacing

In the opening of Public Trust, the pacing is a slow build-up that ramps up at the very end. Through slow push-in camera movements and lilting voiceover, we are drawn into the emotional attachment to the public lands. Thoughtful inserts also further flesh out the stakes for characters.

And the opening sequence reaches a final crescendo when Hal Herring warns us about the takeover of public lands. He lights a match and starts the fire; we hear the voiceover montage of various politicians lobbying for “American energy dominance,” and wonder what’s to come, as the extreme close-up fades into a beautiful, all-encompassing helicopter shot.

If the opening of Public Trust is like a pot of room temperature water coming to a slow boil, then the opening of RBG can be described as an already-hot tea kettle that’s boiling over the lid. The opening scene begins in a frenzy, pausing only briefly when we hear the first quote from our main character: “I ask no favor for my sex. All I ask our brethren is that they take their feet off our necks.”

This mic-drop quote leads into a further building of momentum, with a montage of her in the gym, people lining up to see her speak, and finally a counter-montage of her supporters (mostly women) singing her praises.

Music

In both pieces, the score plays a pivotal role is setting the mood for the opening scenes.

In Public Trust, the haunting score consists mostly of long-held background notes with a singular piano melody. The slow pacing of the shots is equally matched by the music’s tempo.

In RBG, the opening sequence begins with an orchestral frenzy. That combined with the visuals of the colonial statues transports us back to an older era of America, akin to the backroom of a boys club where everyone is drinking scotch and complaining about their wives.

The score comes to an abrupt close as RBG delivers her first quote of the film. This halt gives the film the extra leverage it needs so that when the music picks back up with a modern, sassy tune sung by a female voice, we are catapulted into the world of “Notorious RBG,” and this makes us compelled to understand what makes her so worthy of all the acclaim.

All in all, both films provide excellent examples for what a feature documentary opening scene can be.

Is it the epic shooting style? The sound effects? The ingenious story build? Each week, I deconstruct a favorite video of mine and explain What Made It. I’m Mia and I’m a freelance videographer. I make videos under Missing In Action Productions and I love to talk about, collaborate on, and make films.